Able to reach speeds in excess of 200 miles per hour in a dive, they are the fastest creatures on the planet, yet the peregrine falcon nearly became extinct, due to pesticides, premature fledglings, and loss of habitat. But in 1977, a captive-bred peregrine successfully raised a family in the wild. Since then more than 4,000 peregrines have been released—indeed, all of them in eastern North America are captive-bred birds or their descendants. Beautifully illustrated, with 80 color photos of these birds in the wild—including in-flight images and photos filling two pages—this book tells the story of their rescue and describes their biology, behavior, hunting methods, and reproduction.